The sporting goods industry strives to improve the equipment available for each sport and soccer is no exception. There are a number of problems associated with conventional soccer balls due to their structure. First, they are not well suited for indoor use since they can readily break windows and other fragile items. Additionally, conventional soccer balls require a considerable amount of space in order to play since the balls can travel long distances. Further, it is difficult for a beginner to attain and maintain control over the ball, particularly when kicked or thrown toward him at high velocity. It is also difficult for a beginning goalkeeper to catch and hold onto a ball when kicked at him.
Conventional soccer balls can also cause pain and/or injury when they strike the face or other sensitive parts of the body. The potential for this is particularly high for goalkeepers. The chances for such an injury and the attendant pain are increased in cold weather. The likelihood of such an occurrence is also higher for young children who have not yet developed good hand-eye coordination.
An additional problem with conventional soccer balls is that they are inflated with air and once the bladder has been punctured, the ball is essentially useless.
Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to minimize the problems noted above while maintaining as many of the aerodynamic and other properties associated with conventional soccer balls as possible.
Balls which are similar in weight, shape and size to conventional soccer balls but which are softer and have a lower coefficient of elastic restitution would be highly desirable to alleviate the problems discussed above since they would have a flight pattern similar to that of a conventional soccer ball but would not attain as great a velocity as a conventional soccer ball and they would not travel as far. Accordingly, a smaller area could be used to play the game. Similarly, when such a ball strikes a fragile article, such as a window, it will be less likely to break the article if it is softer than a conventional ball.
There are a number of other reasons why softer soccer balls would be of substantial benefit to the sporting public. First and foremost, they would be better suited for the instruction and development of athletic skills in children and handicapped individuals. For example, a skill that must be substantially perfected by anyone (with the exception of a goalkeeper) who wishes to become proficient at the sport of soccer is the ability to receive a ball kicked or thrown from a teammate at a relatively high velocity and to obtain and maintain control of the ball without touching the ball with the hands or arms. This is a skill known in the game as trapping the ball and it entails positioning one's body in such a way that the ball will strike any part of the body (other than the arms and hands) and rebound in front of the player in such a manner that the ball can be kept within a short distance from the player.
Confidence plays a vital role in the performance by an individual in the sport of soccer and it plays an even greater role in the attainment of athletic skills by children and handicapped individuals. Not only do the balls of this invention enable a beginner to trap the ball with greater success, due to their lower coefficient of elastic restitution, they also allow one to trap the ball with a reduced likelihood of pain or injury. This allows the beginner to develop a variety of techniques for trapping the ball and to develop confidence in his ability.
Another important facet of the game of soccer is the ability to strike the ball with one's forehead. This skill is known as heading and it can be used in a variety of ways, e.g., to shoot the ball at the opponent's goal, to trap the ball, to pass the ball, to advance the ball up the field and to clear the ball from one's own defensive area. Since the ball may be traveling at a considerable velocity and since the forehead is a sensitive part of the body, many people will not strike the ball with their forehead as hard as they can, will close their eyes when they do, or will not even attempt to head the ball, any one of which can greatly detract from the ability to play the game. Thus it is important that these habits either be corrected or prevented and the use of a softer ball would be helpful in eliminating any reluctance to strike the ball with the forehead.
The ball of the present invention is also useful in the development of goalkeeper skills. Confidence is probably more important to a goalkeeper than to to anyone else playing the game of soccer. A goalkeeper's confidence can be increased by using the ball of the present invention because the ball is easier to catch and there is less chance of the goalkeeper being injured by being struck by the ball.
The subject invention is directed, then, to substitute soccer balls useful in alleviating the problems described above and a method for making such balls.